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ML_james_bkp.htm
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| This 19th century painting by Dennis
Malone Carter depicts the incident aboard the captured USS Philadelphia.
According to tradition, the sailor standing left of center is
Reuben James. James reportedly thrust out his wounded hand to
ward off an enemy attack on Lt. Stephen Decatur, pictured near
the bottom left side of the canvas. |
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Petty Officer Reuben James
Young Sailor's Unselfish Bravery Spawned A Naval Legend
By Bethanne Kelly Patrick
Military.com Columnist
Future naval legend Reuben James was born in 1776 as his nation began its fight for independence. By the time the Revolutionary War had been won, the U.S. Navy had virtually disappeared. The Continental Navy's last ship, the frigate Alliance, was sold in 1785. Without the power to tax its populace, the U.S. government could not manage its debt or maintain any warships.
By the time James, then a boatswain's mate, found himself aboard the Constellation in 1799, the situation had changed dramatically. President George Washington stated in his annual address to Congress on Dec. 3, 1793: "If we desire to avoid insult, we must be able to repel it; if we desire to secure peace ... it must be known that we are at all times ready for war."
Despite debate over the political role of and possible threat posed by a standing Navy, in 1794, Secretary of War Henry Knox approved six construction sites for new frigates.
The boat James served on, the Constellation, was constructed in Baltimore Harbor and had 36 guns. The vessel was launched there on Sept. 7, 1797, just in time to participate in the trade-based Quasi War with France. In attempting to stop French encroachment on U.S. trade with Britain and the rest of Europe, the fledgling U.S. Navy launched the first of what would become many offensives on enemy turf. The U.S. engaged the French navy in the Caribbean.
The highlight of this undeclared war was the February 1799 capture of the French frigate L'Insurgente. James was a participant in both this and the subsequent draw of the French ship La Vengeance on Feb. 1, 1800.
However, it was during the next year's Barbary Wars that petty officer James was credited with a singular act of heroism. Tripoli had declared war, but under the leadership of commodores Richard Dale and Elnad Preble, the U.S. Navy blockaded the coast and prevented the Barbary States from their standard practices of extortion and seizure. Stephen Decatur and his men -- James included -- went into harbor on Feb. 16, 1804, and scuttled the captured USS Philadelphia.
When Decatur faced an enemy blade, legend says that James positioned himself in between. While others attribute this act to one Daniel Frazier, it is fact that James served long and well for the Navy. He was a prisoner of war in 1815, but after the war continued to serve, participating in the capture of the Algerian flagship Mashouda. James did not retire from active duty until 1836.
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